On March 16, 2002, a Cirrus Design Corp. SR-20 (registration N244CD) operated by Paul A. Heflin was involved in an aviation accident near Lexington, KY. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: The pilot's failure to maintain aircraft control. Factors in this accident were the undetermined failure of the turn coordinator, as reported by the pilot, and the instrument meteorological conditions. This summary draws on records from the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) historical archive.
After reporting a turn coordinator failure, a pilot became disoriented and attempted to deploy the CAPS parachute. The parachute did not deploy in flight; the aircraft landed in a field and the parachute deployed after ground contact.
Incident Overview
An instrument-rated pilot and a passenger were flying in instrument meteorological conditions (IMC) with the intention of practicing instrument approaches. Shortly after takeoff, the pilot reported that the turn coordinator had failed. The instrument indicated a left bank regardless of the pilot's control inputs, leading to spatial disorientation.
Parachute System Activation
The aircraft was equipped with a Cirrus Airplane Parachute System (CAPS). The pilot stated that he pulled the CAPS activation handle repeatedly, but the cable did not extend and "nothing seemed to happen." The aircraft subsequently broke out of the cloud layer, and the pilot performed an emergency landing to a field.
Witness Observations and Post-Accident Testing
Witnesses near the accident site reported that the CAPS parachute deployed after ground contact. Post-accident examination of the wreckage did not reveal any pre-impact failures of the instrumentation or autopilot. The CAPS system was found to function normally during testing, though it was noted that the pull forces required to activate the parachute varied significantly.